292 



NATURE 



[November 12, 19 14 



Annals of the Z6-sfe Astronomical Observatory. — 

 The seventh volume of the Annals of the Z6-se Obser- 

 vatory is divided into four parts, and deals with solar, 

 double-star and conietary observations made during 

 the year 191 1, together with a discussion of some early 

 star observations made about the year 1744. The 

 observations of the sun are confined to spots, faculae, 

 and prominences, and, in addition to the observations 

 themselves, a very complete summary is given of 

 their distribution in both latitude and longitude, with 

 reproductions from the drawings of the chief pro- 

 minences observed. Part ii. deals with the observa- 

 tions, both visual and photographic, of the double 

 and multiple stars ; while the third part is devoted 

 to the observations of comet Brooks (1911c) and 

 comet Borrelly (i9iie). In the last-mentioned part 

 comparisons are made with the observations of others 

 who studied these comets, and an interesting series 

 of reproductions from photographs of comet Brooks 

 accompany the text. The last and fourth portion is 

 devoted to a description and reduction of a catalogue 

 of stars observed at Pekin under the Emperor K Men- 

 Long in the year 1744. Two reproductions of the 

 old Chinese charts are given, and the stars have 

 been identified and their positions reduced to the 

 epoch of 1875, with accompanying charts. His- 

 torically interesting are the translations of the early 

 decrees relating to the staff of the observatory and of 

 the preface to the catalogue. 



THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHEMICAL 

 INDUSTRIES IN THE BRITISH ISLES. 



LTNDER the title of "The Capture of Germany's 

 ' Chemical Industries," the Chemical News has pub- 

 lished (vol. ex., p. 151) an editorial article dealing with 

 the situation opened to English chemical manufacturers 

 by the war, a situation which has already formed the 

 subject of an article in N.viure (September 17, 

 No. 2342). "A unique opportunity," it is stated, "is 

 now offered of developing industries hitherto swamped 

 by foreign competition, and the nation relies upon the 

 enterprise of its Scientific men to attack the subject 

 with promptitude and vigour. It is satisfactory to 

 find that the Government has already taken the 

 matter up, and a Committee has been appointed to 

 consider and advise as to the best means of obtaining 

 for the use of British industry sufficient supplies of 

 chemical products, colours, and dyestuffs of kinds 

 hitherto largely imported from a country with which 

 we are at present at war." 



The same subject forms the text of an important 

 article in the Chemical World for October, which, 

 after reviewing the conditions which led to Germany's 

 occupying a practically unassailable position in this 

 field before the war, issues a note of warning as to 

 the methods which must be adopted if England is 

 to gain success in the future under greatly modified 

 conditions. 



"The combination of banking facilities, system of 

 factory management, and scientific thoroughness in 

 detail was undoubtedly one which our manufacturers 

 found especially formidable." If the products which 

 Germany has rnade, however, are to be manufactured 

 under English trade conditions, "not during the reign 

 of panic but as a permanent venture, it will need a 

 strong pull and a pull altogether by the interests 

 which are the equivalent of those enumerated above, 

 be they what they may. A good deal of loose talk 

 about the effect of the patent law has been beside the 

 mark, when it is remembered that the only protection 

 accorded to Germany in this respect was that given to 

 the one who got to the Patent Office first. The race 

 was to the strong; to the one best organised. It 



NO. 2350, VOL. 94] 



would be idle to fight such conditions, which represent 

 modern scientific warfare at its best, with the tools of 

 the 1870's." 



A close inspection will confirm the statement made 

 by a director of one of the largest German aniline 

 dye manufactories, that not 10 per cent, of their pro- 

 ducts or output was protected by patent rights but bv 

 organisation along German lines. " Equally vague 

 has been the statement that want of free alcohol has 

 been at the root of England's failure. With alcohol 

 at the cost of rain-water and free trade in the patents 

 of other countries, the result would have been much 

 the same in the absence of that spirit of scientific and 

 deliberate correctness and efficiency and the peculiar 

 self-effacement of scientific workers who, directing 

 operations in the works at practically the wages of 

 superior workmen, have achieved such results in the 

 worldwide endeavour on the part of Germany to out- 

 class all other nations in this special branch of in- 

 dustry." 



ITiere is no doubt that in the past there has been a 

 very great neglect by many manufacturers of the ser- 

 vices of the properly trained chemist. The writer re- 

 calls one case of a large English chemical firm, which 

 had been the pioneer in elaborating the processes of 

 manufacture of a certain widely used acid ; after the 

 death of the chemist who had initiated the processes 

 which had brought this firm a golden revenue, opera- 

 tions were carried on for nearly twenty years, without 

 a single trained chemist being employed in the factory 

 to supervise or control the processes or introduce im- 

 provements, although the processes were of a com- 

 plicated character, and the output represented a value 

 of more than 150,000^. per annum. By this time Con- 

 tinental competition had become so severe that it was 

 almost hopeless to regain ground which had been 

 steadily lost year by year in this particular field. 

 I There is little doubt that the value of employing 

 I numerous chemists in chemical works is becoming 

 ; more and more appreciated in this country. The 

 i supplv of well-trained chemical workers which is avail- 

 able for the coming struggle will be the most impor- 

 tant factor in its decision. 



AUSTRALIAN WELLS.^ 



THE great Australian artesian basin is, says this 

 report, "undoubtedly the largest artesian area 

 in the world, but at the same time there has probably 

 been less work done on it than on any other artesian 

 basin known " (p. xi.). There are two conflicting ex- 

 planations of the nature of this basin. According to 

 the older official view it is artesian, using that term 

 in its original sense for a synclinal in which water 

 enters at a high-level intake, spreads through a per- 

 meable layer under a wide cover of impermeable beds, 

 and is forced up through wells by water pressure from 

 the higher parts of the water-bearing layer. The in- 

 take beds beside this Australian basin were considered 

 to be so extensive, so porous, and so well supplied by 

 rain and streams that there need be no fear of the 

 supply being appreciably reduced by artificial wells. 



According to one calculation the wells put down 

 in Queensland up to 190 1 used only 1/183 of the 

 annual supply from the rain, and other estimates have 

 calculated that the supply, without any renewal, would 

 last for 3000 years. According to a second hypothesis, 

 the U-tube conception of these wells is inconsistent | 

 with the variations in the head of the water and in its j 

 chemical composition, and also with its high tem- 

 peratures. According to this explanation the bulk of ! 

 the water is water of cisternage, supplemented to a | 



"1 Report of tlie Interstate Conference on Artesian Water." Sydney, 1 

 1913, XV., 207. Pp. 68+40 maps and plates. j 



